Chapter 55
“They said it would only take a moment, but it’s taking a bit longer.”
I was still holed up in my room, waiting for the maids to finish adjusting my clothes properly and bring them to me.
Just then, someone knocked on the door.
“May I come in for a moment?”
It was Calias’s voice.
Startled, I jumped up from my chair without thinking.
Lamia, who had stayed beside me to keep me warm because the maids’ quarters had no fireplace, called out joyfully to the outside.
“Just a moment! Please wait a little!”
In an instant, she tidied my outfit neatly. Then, before I could even react, she dashed to open the door.
“Please, Madam. The lady has been waiting for you anxiously for quite some time.”
“When did I?!”
I gaped at Lamia’s false and irritating behavior.
But as Calias strode into the room, I quickly composed my expression and greeted him calmly.
“What brings you here, Calias?”
“Are you busy, by any chance?”
“No, not at all.”
“That’s good. I’ve brought a physician to check on Chloe.”
“Huh? Why? Did I look unwell?”
“Not exactly. After such a grueling journey, we just wanted to make sure your body wasn’t harmed. Traveling in the cold for long periods can sometimes cause illnesses without you even realizing it.”
“Is that so?”
Could it be that the difficulties I endured overnight were due to some illness?
I had endured a rough time throughout the night, so I welcomed the physician with relief.
The doctor, draped in a neat cloak, wore extremely long gloves that reached his elbows.
The cloak dragged slightly, and the gloves seemed a bit too big, as if they weren’t his own.
He greeted me very elegantly and, following Calias’s instructions, approached me.
“Check carefully if the Marchioness’s body shows any abnormalities.”
“Yes, I’ll do my best.”
He knelt before me.
“Extend your wrist, please.”
I wondered why he wouldn’t remove his gloves to check my pulse, but I obediently complied.
‘Can he really hear my heartbeat like that?’
Being a professional, perhaps it didn’t matter. He carefully held my wrist and checked my pulse through the gloves.
The moment his hand touched me, a strange chill ran through my body, sending shivers down my spine.
“…?”
I widened my eyes and looked at him.
He was smiling strangely.
What the…
I hadn’t done anything, yet my body instinctively tensed.
Trying not to show it, I straightened my posture and calmly asked,
“How is it? Any problems?”
He shook his head, still smiling.
“Fortunately, you are perfectly healthy. Though you might want to eat a bit more.”
At the mention of eating more, both Calias and Lamia nodded simultaneously.
I withdrew my hand, feeling uneasy at his smile.
‘Healthy… I’m relieved, I suppose.’
I considered telling him about shivering in the cold all night but stopped myself.
The unexplained discomfort I felt toward him wouldn’t subside easily.
‘Maybe last night was just exceptionally cold…’
I had no choice but to trust that I was healthy.
Calias then met secretly with the sorcerer again.
The sorcerer quickly removed the cloak and gloves he had worn to appear like a neat physician, as if wearing them might somehow taint him.
Back in his extravagant attire, he could barely hide his excitement, shaking his head.
“The lady has been cursed by an incredibly powerful spell! Who could it be? This sorcerer must be extraordinary! I would love to meet them.”
Calias, displeased with his enthusiasm, asked,
“Is there any way to break the curse?”
“I cannot break it. To dispel such a powerful curse, it must either be undone by someone stronger, or the sorcerer who cast it must die.”
He meant that he was weaker than the one who cursed Chloe.
“A strong sorcerer, huh…”
Muttering to himself, Calias listened as the sorcerer, with a generous smile, added some seemingly casual advice.
“There are many ways for a sorcerer to gain strength, but the surest and fastest method is this…”
“…?”
“Absorb the grudges of others.”
Then he chuckled aloud, teasingly,
“In my lifetime, I’ve never seen a sorcerer become so strong by carrying such heavy grudges.”
“Grudges?”
“The strongest grudge is an unjust death, isn’t it?”
“You mean they grew stronger by killing people?”
“I can’t say for certain, but it’s highly possible. If this sorcerer became powerful in a short time, it’s almost guaranteed. I’m very curious who it could be.”
Calias suspected the one who cursed Chloe was Kabala.
It was well known that Kabala was a black magician. In Ronheim, black magicians were traditionally called sorcerers.
The term “black magician” was politically adopted by Kabala to reshape his image. People would consult sorcerers during crises, but they didn’t tolerate sorcerers taking higher positions.
Kabala, obsessed with showing he deserved to stand by the emperor, declared himself a black magician as soon as he became empress.
‘What on earth is Kabala up to?’
Calias clenched his fists.
The sorcerer teased,
“Any sorcerer stronger than this would be a notorious murderer. Even if one exists, they wouldn’t dare show themselves to the king.”
“…”
“Your beautiful lady will die soon. Oh, such a sad thing.”
He then extended his hand as if demanding payment for his services.
Calias asked one last time,
“Is there no alternative method?”
The sorcerer shrugged casually.
“My appointment with the butler is over. Perhaps you should pay the promised fee. Just know the lady has very little time left.”
He then walked toward the door.
Calias closed his eyes and sighed.
“I didn’t want to resort to this.”
The sorcerer, pretending to hesitate at the door, suddenly leapt through the window across the room.
Thunk!
“Ugh!”
Calias grabbed him by the neck and lifted him effortlessly with one hand.
“How dare you trade with my wife’s life.”
“W-Wait! Your Majesty! Cough…!”
The sorcerer struggled, his face turning red from the lack of blood flow.
Calias didn’t budge an inch.
“You… are the son of a saint… aren’t you?”
Calias chuckled at the appeal that a saint’s son shouldn’t use violence.
“I am the son of a saint, yes, but I am also the king of this country and the husband responsible for protecting my wife.”
His eyes were like a wolf about to snap the throat of its enemy who dared touch his mate.
“Now, here’s my question. Will you die without speaking, or will you give up one arm to open your mouth?”
“Cough! Ugh! N-No…!”
“Ah, if you want to leave with all your limbs intact, it will cost extra. Are you okay with that?”
